Los Angeles Times

Dungy contacted— but not by school

- By Gary Klein

It did not take long for unpredicta­ble plot twists to appear in USC’s coaching search. During a Monday morning appearance on “The Dan Patrick Show,” former NFL coach Tony Dungy said he had been contacted regarding the USC job but that he had no interest. When Patrick asked Dungy whether USC had called him, Dungy said, “They haven’t, but as they say, representa­tives of the organizati­on have called. Your people called my people just to see if you’re interested.” On Monday afternoon, the school announced that “individual­s posing as USC representa­tives made overtures to two coaches regarding the Trojans’ head coaching position.” The announceme­nt cited calls that had beenmade to the Denver Broncos. Former USC All-American Jack Del Rio, who is regarded as a potential candidate, is the Broncos’ defensive coordinato­r. USC said, “A person falsely identifyin­g himself as a high-rankingmem­berof theUSCathl­etic department attempted to make contact several times with the Denver Broncos’ coaching staff to discuss the Trojan job. That person has been identified by USC and appropriat­e action is being taken.” In regard to Dungy, the school said, “A person, again not a representa­tive of USC, also has been identified and USC is in the process of contacting that individual.” Athletic Director Pat Haden said in a statement that Dungy’s discussion about being contacted “was a complete surprise to us. So were the calls to the Broncos. “I can assure you no authorized representa­tive of USC or our athletic department made these calls. “As I said last week, we will not comment on every name that comes out. Itwould be a disservice to our players and coaches.… We have a head coach right now in Ed Orgeron. We have not offered the job to anyone.” Later, Dungy tweeted at USC’s athletic department Twitter feed: “@USC_Athletics I was not contacted by an official USC rep. Turns out it was someone acting on their own. I have apologized to Pat Haden.” Rogers returns Freshman receiver Darreus Rogerswent through limited drills for the first time since suffering a high ankle sprain against Boston College on Sept. 14. Rogers would be a welcome addition to a thin receiving corps. All-AmericanMa­rqise Lee has notpractic­edsince sufferinga­knee sprain against Arizona State. Orgeron said Monday that Lee was “very questionab­le” for Thursday night’s game against Arizona. The junior is not expected to play. Victor Blackwell, who left Sunday’s workout because of illness, completed practice Monday. De’Von Flournoy (ankle) sat out. Quick hits Because classes will go on Thursday, USC is not permitting tailgating or picnicking on campus before the Arizona game. Also, “Football game attendees will not be permitted to park in on-campus lots. However, campus season parking passes will be honored for this game,” USC said. Informatio­n ontailgati­ng, parkingand­shuttles: WePlayFor2­013.com/Thursday. gary.klein@latimes.com Twitter: @latimeskle­in

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